


De-Aged DCU

by ilyena_sylph, Merfilly



Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Alternate Universe, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-08
Updated: 2014-03-08
Packaged: 2018-01-15 00:32:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1284547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ilyena_sylph/pseuds/ilyena_sylph, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merfilly/pseuds/Merfilly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The cosmic entities of the DCU interfere in a major battle, and present them with a test. Focuses mostly on the BatFamily, the Teen Titans, and glimpses of the rest of the DCU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	De-Aged DCU

**Author's Note:**

> Written on Livejournal in serial format. Pretty sure this is the first time I've put it all in one place.
> 
> Set Sometime after Birds of Prey 46, after Sins of Youth, but well before Graduation Day. (Except it also uses Hush, so forgive the timeline)

Saving Jason

Adjusting to being sixteen years old again had been difficult. His mind was his own, his skills were in place, but the distraction of a body thrumming with younger impulses had required some adaptations. It was just as well Dick had opted to stay with his team, considering the bad idea of Dick's thirteen year old's libido in the house with Bruce's current lack of discipline. Still, there was the mission, and Bruce was _determined_ to save more than just Harvey in all this mess.

He was considering the feeling of knowing he had succeeded with Harvey, when he had to slam the brakes on to stop from hitting a boy who staggered out into the road ahead of him. That he was so close to Crime Alley made his skin shiver, and he paid sharp attention to the details of the slight boned, whip sharp boy in clothing far too big.

Bruce looked in shock at the boy ahead of the Batmobile, and quickly got out. That child...just a shade older than Tim was right now, and so... "Jason?"

"Br...Batman?" The boy looked scared, and hurt, and just a little of the familiar defiance showed.

"Jay?" Bruce went to him quickly, reaching down for him, trying to understand how this could possibly have happened, and the memory of Clayface made his body tighten hard, but he'd started with his name...

"B, what happened?" The boy was dazed; his memories as clouded as some of the rogues they'd been trying to help.

Bruce reached down to pick him up, holding him tight in against his body, wanting there to be some way this was real in defiance of everything rational. "I'm not sure, Jay... but I've got you."

Jay burrowed into remembered security, remembered warmth, and held on. When Bruce returned to the car with him, he curled in _his seat_ , and let Bruce take him home. Of all the Rogues that Bruce had tried to save during this, he had never dared hoped he could save his son, the Robin he'd let fall. Now, he had that chance.

As Bruce parked the Batmobile, he had to smile. He could bet, with Jay only twelve, and Tim merely eleven, that Alfred was going to be thankful for the health and endurance of a twenty-something year old body. Because there was no way in any hell that Bruce, Alfred, or even Dick when he was told, was going to let this miracle slide away.

* * *

New Chances

Alan was bone tired. It didn't matter that he was...twenty two, or twenty three at most now. Rounding up the children, on both sides of the battle, had taken a lot out of him and he'd had to bolster the other Lanterns that had helped. Poor Kyle, only eleven, but he'd pushed himself hard to help.

Now, he wanted to go home, soothe Molly down, and see just how Jenny and Todd were doing. He was so glad no powers had been lost, so that Jenny had been able to get to her twin and get them both to Gotham.

It really hit him, though, as the report came in from a weary Martian Manhunter that this was a test, just what it meant for Alan. He was a young man again, with a young wife...and two preteen children. The biggest failings in his life revolved around his children...

The JSA's Lantern walked into his home, his heart thumping hard in anticipation, and was rewarded with a sight he had never hoped to see. His wife, his beautiful Molly, was sitting on the couch with Todd's head on her lap, all but asleep, while Jenny curled in front of her brother, already in dreamland.

"Dad?" Todd called, half-apprehensive. He never did well with change, and this had been so abrupt.

"Yes, my son. I'm home...and so are you."

Todd's eyes closed fully then, and let his father scoop them both up in energy, to be put to bed. He might have argued he was a big boy, might have argued he was actually adult in his head...but Todd agreed with Jenny. This might be the best thing they'd ever had happen to them. A new chance to be kids, to be a family.

Molly just followed them up, to tuck the children in, and then to hold her husband.

Everything would be fine.

* * *

Forced Parenting

No sooner had Hal (god, he was a gorgeous teen, Spectre or no...and yeah, he appreciated the quick clean-up even if it was an abuse of power) sent him home than Ollie knew his life was hell.

Home had an eleven year old, slightly wild-eyed Connor meeting him at the door. The boy was wearing a tee shirt over drawstring-pulled gym shorts. They were all but falling off the lanky kid.

Behind him, Mia had managed to make a shirt into a dress with a pair of legging that might have been sweats once upon a time.

Ollie felt a fierce panic building in his chest, making sweat break out under his far too large costume.

"Guys?" he asked.

"What happened?" Connor asked.

"Basically, that big-ass fight I went to today?" //Was it only today? Shit.// "Some cosmic being or beings decided we were headed for hell in a handbasket, and zapped all of us...both sides...and the ones closest to us in our lives with a bit of youth. Hal...Spectre, anyway, says it's a test, to see if we really deserve to be the center of the universe's problems." //or he did once he and I finished...ahem, kids, right, Ollie.//

"Oh." Connor sat and thought about it, using every trick of meditation to overcome the slight problem of attention deficiency he'd had at this age.

"Ollie?"

"Yeah, Mia?" The elder archer looked at the pretty little girl.

"I feel good." Her eyes caught his and held. "Real good."

Ollie felt tears coming up before he moved, catching her in a hug, and holding on as that simple thing sank in. They'd need tests, but...if she was...suddenly Ollie decided being barely seventeen wasn't so bad, and maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't stuff it up.

"Best thing I've heard all day, Mia."

* * *

Gotham's Finest

One minute he was sitting in his chair, wishing he hadn't quit smoking, and wondering how soon after he walked in his door he could pour a drink, the next he felt a cold chill pour over him...and his pants didn't fit quite right.

For that matter, his shirt felt odd too.

Jim Gordon wondered what lunatic had done what and how they got in his station. He got up, gun coming to his hand, and was arrested by the cast of his own reflection.

If he had to wager, the man looking back at him was maybe twenty.

He swiped a hand up over his hair, verifying that he wasn't wearing a head band or a hat.

He was just going insane.

They'd always said this city would crack him. As he contemplated that, his phone rang.

"Gordon." Even his voice sounded firmer, younger.

"Dad? Hi." There were tears in her voice, but joy as well. And...she sounded different.

"Barb?"

"From the sound of it, I need to talk to you in person."

"I'll come over."

"No...I think I'd like to walk over."

The words hung there for just a moment, and then Jim sat down.

//If this is insanity, stick me in Arkham and let me enjoy it.// It was all he could think, as he let the line go dead over 'I love yous' and 'see you soons'.

* * *

Kitty Surprise

They were still rounding up the rogues and more wild heroes when Ted's cell jingled _Black Cat_ by Janet Jackson. A still too-endowed fourteen year old Karen just rolled her eyes; everyone 'knew' that meant it was his little Gotham diversion calling him.

"Hello?" He ducked away from the crowd of kiddies, glad he had matured fairly young into his mass.

" _Ted?_!" the voice of an angry, unhappy, headed towards furious Selina Kyle was never a good thing... but at the same time, it was too light, too high.

"Oh, damn, Kitty..." He knew his voice wasn't as gruff as usual, not hoarsened by years of bad dives, and cheap shots to the throat.

"Magic is _you people's_ game; _what_ is going on?!" 

"Calm down, Selina, we haven't figured that part out...been a little busy. But it got us all, both sides...and apparently our families too," Ted managed to tell her, biting down every thought in his head about legalities and not liking having his current girl literally a girl. He'd already seen his Hellcat...and fourteen was way too damn young for Dinah or Selina with their temperaments. 

Selina hissed at him over the phone, and he could hear, muffled, the sound of her nails clenching against the phone's plastic. "...everyone?" she asked after another few moments, and her voice was much quieter. 

It didn't take Ted too long to guess at her aim, and his eyes moved across to where the League members were being rounded up by J'onn...their only full adult at present. "Everyone."

"...at least you said both sides," she muttered after a long moment. "I cannot _believe_ this, Ted!" her voice went high with re-mounting temper and he heard her take a slow breath. "Well... I guess I'm better off than a lot of--oh, no. _Holly_. I have to go!" 

Ted heard the click, and closed his eyes. "Well, damn." He shook his head, and promised himself to go check on her as soon as they found relatives for the juvenile delinquents.

* * *

Titanic Adjustments

"Better, Wonder Chick?" Dick asked, and indulged himself with a smirk as he wrapped the last of the compacted space-blankets in his boots around Donna's shoulders and Roy glared at him. Kory, already wrapped up--much more for everyone else's benefit than hers--hovered next to him, her arms crossed unhappily over her much-smaller chest, her hair literally throwing sparks from her temper. He was pretty sure they were going to be hearing 'We just _did_ this!' a lot. 

"Much, Robbie... thank you," Donna smiled at him, sweet as ever on her young face. "That was--well, at least I'm better off than my poor sister was--but still!" She looked across the way at where her sister was wrapped in Superman's cape, armor tucked under her arm, and a dangerous look in her much-younger blue eyes. 

Jesse Quick snorted, hands running down the too-long sleeves of her bodysuit. "Everyone that has ever made a crack about my suit--" 

"Can shove it, Jess, yes, we know, we _heard_ already," Garth snorted from next to her, where he had his hands on Grant and Argent's shoulders, trying to keep the two ten-year-olds under control--not that he was having a much better time of it himself. 

Wally skidded to a stop next to them again, nearly falling over his own feet. Just as he did, Dick's comm started going off on the bands the off-active members used, and he looked over at Vic.

"Vic, help me out here, tell people to clear the comms and come in, it's everyone?" 

"Can do," the almost-teen in the gleaming gold said, eyes closing as he reached out. "...Man, they aren't gonna be able to _get_ in, not til I get home to reset the system to recognize them--I can't do it remote, not for everybody! And crap, Wally, go get BB, would you? He was supposed to fly back tomorrow..."

"Do I have to?" Wally whined, but a move from Vic sent him running back out of there. 

"Then let's get moving, Vic, if you've got to be there, huh?" Dick asked, looking back across the span of the no-longer-a-battlefield towards the T-jet. "Looks like they've got things under control finally, and--" 

"And we're going home _right now_ 'cause the _Yei'i_ only know what's happened to my _etai yazi_ ," Roy's voice snapped as he apparently kicked his brain back into gear. 

All of them winced, then nodded and turned to head for the jet--and two voices stopped them almost at once, "Kid--" 

"Boy-o--" 

Dick whipped around, looking _up_ at the tall, blond (slim? Huh?), one-eyed (but, that doesn--) man--//damn it//--behind them in civilian clothing that was obviously barely staying on. //What the? He wasn't...// 

"No, Kid, I _wasn't_ involved, I was just in the damn city," Slade snarled, lips tight against his teeth. "Heard the chaos, then _this_ happened. Mind if I hitch a ride with you? Rose--" 

While Dick was distracted with Slade, the tiny brunette that barely came to Roy's shoulder looked up at Roy with big blue eyes, her jacket crossed tight across her chest. "I want to go with you, boy-o--I'm worried about the baby..." 

The look she threw towards the adult members of the JSA said there was more to it than that, but Roy wasn't arguing and he reached out to wrap an arm around her. "Me too. Okay, Di. Sounds good--you look more like you than I look like m--" 

He was interrupted by Vic yelling at damn near full volume, "Oh hell no Robbie you ain't _even_ bringing him along with us, un _uh!_ Y'know how long it takes me on a normal day to fix his bugs and crap?!" 

"Stone. Do _stop yelling_ ," Slade said calmly. "I'm as disadvantaged as you are, without my gear, and Rose is in the Tower. The only question is if you're going to let me in, or if I'm coming in on my o--" 

"Slade, Vic, _knock it off!_ " Dick snapped--and was instantly grateful that his voice didn't break. "Slade's right, Vic." 

"You would say--" 

"Stone, if you finish that sentence..." Slade cut in again, suddenly very close in front of Vic with all of that speed. "I'll apologize to Logan later for the damage. As it is-- Antonia! Freeze!" His head whipped around to snap a look at the nine-year-old who'd gotten away from Garth, and she froze in place with a half-frightened noise. 

"Before anything _else_ goes wrong, Vic, guys, c'mon, let's just go home," Dick coaxed, getting between the two of them. "Alright?" 

Vic glared over Dick's head, but nodded once and turned on a heel to stalk for the jet, the only one of them who's "clothing" still fit properly, given that it was a construct of his mind. Slade nodded, turned--and only that Dick was so close let him see the shock flash through his body. "...sister? Well, little bird--" 

"Shut _up_ , Slade!" the little brunette snapped, and Dick and Roy exchanged completely confused looks about when those two might have gotten on a first name basis. 

The tall blond opened his mouth--Dinah sucked a breath in, lips parting--and Slade actually stayed silent, shaking his head once. The little brunette tossed her head triumphantly and started for the T-jet, fingers still on Roy's arm.

* * *

Little Sisters

Tim looked at Bruce, trying to put all the pieces together in his own head. Out on the mats, the causes of their puzzlement continued to spar, delightedly, with Jason.

"Spoiler's supposed to be my age. Batgirl too."

"They have not been in the business as long." Bruce's shoulders rippled through a shrug, and Tim was again thankful that Dick wasn't home. Tim had no doubt Dick would have been nearly useless, with Bruce wandering around looking far too much like the Adonis the tabloids painted him out to be.

"So, we got basic age ranges according to real age, and team grouping, with variations based off heroic...or villainous...seniority."

"So it appears. Alfred, Jim, and Leslie are all fully mature. Green Arrow is older than the rest of us in the League, and has the highest age of us...barring J'onn, who is refusing to admit to what age he really is."

Tim looked down at the pair of nine-year old girls that had Jason captivated in a ruthless bout of sparring.

"Looks like I'm going to have to get used to my best girl friends being my sisters," Tim moped.

Bruce just nodded. It was a shame Arthur Brown had died so recently. He was sure the pair of girls would have been able to save him.

With that thought ringing in his mind, he turned away from the children and went to get ready for his evening. Harvey had asked Bruce to go on a double date, and there was no way he was letting his friend down.

* * *

Justice League Juveniles

Guy stared at Fire, decided that some people were early bloomers, and then remembered to get back to his bitching.

"How the hell does Jordan just breeze in and say we're stuck this way as ... KIDS ... until we fix the damn psychos?!"

"He looked kinda hot," was the only comment out of Booster. Beetle was in the middle of taking apart...Guy thought it was a blender and a toaster, and he was kind of afraid of what it would be.

"Fourteen isn't a bad age," Captain Marvel defended. "And it is a noble endeavor. Surely there is wisdom in..."

"Stow it, Whitebread! I've got a BAR to run...one I can't even LEGALLY be INSIDE of!!!"

"S'pose you need to get cracking, then. Seen Sonar lately?" Ralph asked, and Sue smacked him upside the back of the head.

"If you think I'm staying this way, Ralph Dibny!" she started, relaunching the entire conversation/argument over just how they were going to 'pass' this test. Guy sat back, letting it rage, and decided it was a great thing to have the gang back together.

* * *

Write It Up

Lois was not happy. One minute she'd been sipping her coffee, the next she was a lot shorter, and not very decently covered, as her towel had slipped completely off. In retrospect, she did realize that was one small break, that she'd been working from home when it hit. From Clark's moon-calf expression in telling her everything, the heroines //Diana specifically// had been ... at a loss for decent coverage when their costumes no longer fit.

"Lois..."

"Clark, how in the world am I supposed to spin this? Every single identity is at a risk!"

Clark sighed, and sat down on the couch. Being sixteen and coping with his also sixteen year old wife //and just how does that work?// was proving to him it was a better idea for him to think, not punch.

No matter how poorly that was working, when he still had visions of very pretty...

"CLARK!"

The Superteen looked at his wife and smiled sheepishly. "At least we can just turn our stories in from home," he said.

"Which solves nothing but protecting us...for now!" Lois shook her head.

"Bruce will fix it."

That made her roll her eyes, and storm from the room.

* * *

Refusal

He'd been right in the thick of things, getting his hands dirty for a change, when it hit. The wave of chronal energy rolled out, causing costume faux pas and mass confusion.

Alexander Luthor was quick to escape the confines of the far too large power suit, as its discomfort plus the fog in his mind made him fall straight into a paranoia. He had to get away, to find his train of thought, and not be caught. All his life, the commandant he followed had been just that, don't get caught.

Before the heroes had rallied, catching the many other villains present, Lex was five blocks away, forcing his intellect to overcome the mind-shroud blocking off his immediate memories.

He wasn't real sure why he'd been at that fight, or just who had earned his wrath, but he was sure it would come to him in time.

And when it did, there'd be hell to pay...no one cut across a Luthor's grand destiny. He refused to be the first to have it happen.

* * *

Bitty Babies

The Titans had gotten to watch a very young Slade Wilson actually flush at the language being handed out over the phone, about mid-trip. Apparently his bond to Wintergreen ran deep enough to catch the elder Brit up in the spell. That Dinah had covered her mouth and giggled at Slade just added to the 'what-the-hell' ambiance between the Bird and the Merc.

The fact Cerdian had been in the Tower had Garth on edge...Dolphin and Rose had been minding both Cer and Lian, but if this had hit everyone, just what were they going to find?

Roy was just as badly on edge, worrying about his little girl, and even Dick was barely able to keep him settled. Dick wasn't actually taking the uncertainty a lot better than Roy was, as evidenced by his frequent attempts to get up and move--each of which was thwarted by how badly the suit currently fit. 

Cyborg settled in, feeling vaguely pleased and even a little smug to be able to keep his own cool. He got them back to the Tower, and then looked at Wally. "Soon as we open up..."

"Yeah, go hit the master override switch, I got it!" Wally was chomping at the bit to get this done and get back to the very angry Linda in hopes of settling her down.

Dick opened his mouth, took a breath... and shut up. Snapping at Wally wasn't going to do anyone any good. 

The T-jet's comm flared to life with a very young female voice, "Oh, thank god you guys are back!" 

"Rose?" That Slade and Roy spoke as one just made Dinah smile, where neither could really see it.

"Rose, my little girl..."

"My son?" Garth called.

"Oh, _no_." Her voice was dismayed. "Not you guys too... Roy? Garth? That you too?"

"Yeah, Rose...Gillhead, all of us...including the scuzzy..."

"Roy William Harper Junior!" Dinah snapped at him.

"Including your dad," he amended.

Wally had cut out as soon as the comm opened, and barely beat the arming of the inner defenses to the cut-off switch. "Guys, Tower's okay, I'm gone, Linda's going to kill me..." He shot out of the Tower like his name, pouring on speed that he really didn't remember having at this age.

"I'm coming down to meet you guys," Rose said over the comm, "Garth, Dolphin has Cerdian in the pool," she added before the comm went dead. 

That gave all of them time to get off the jet, but not much more than. Roy had just made it to the hallway entrance--and he stopped dead, frozen in the doorway. Dick threw his weight backwards to keep from falling over him, and stretched up to look over his shoulder. "Ho~ly--" he clamped his jaw shut, and glared backwards at the half-smothered laugh. 

Slade muscled past Dick, before everyone else had a chance to follow. Garth slipped out and headed to the pool, with barely a glance at what had arrested the others. Standing in front of them was a young girl, maybe eight, with hair as pure white as the nineteen year-old man's had been. In her arms was an infant with fire red hair, cooing happily up at Rose, as the girl stared right back at the two fathers.

"Well, old man, you're almost old enough to have fathered her," Vic told Slade unmercifully.

Roy bit down on his lip to keep the incredulous curses back, and took a slow step forward to reach for his... infant daughter. 

"Not _quite_ , Stone," Slade growled softly before he moved to lay a hand on his daughter's shoulder, looking down at her. "Rose..."

"Daddy?" The little girl looked up at him, with only a quick glance to be sure Roy knew how to hold such a little baby.

"This has got to be the weirdest thing yet..." Donna managed to say, before she moved to Roy's side to stare at the tiny little carrot top in his arms. When Dinah joined them, she cooed. 

"Oh, Boy-o, I'd forgotten just how bright her hair was..."

"I hadn't," Dick said from his spot at Roy's shoulder, quietly. 

"Yes, Rose. Are you... mm. All right? Wintergreen is spectacularly furious." That made Rose blink, and then move into her father's space, wanting to be soothed by a parent, even if it was _him_.

"Is he okay?" she asked softly.

"He'll be here any minute," Vic told her. "Your dad did a lot of 'yes, Wintergreen' on the flight back." Gar, sitting on Vic's shoulder, had to cough to hide his near-giggles. He was kind of glad Wally had come to get him and let him ride back to the Tower, so he could see all this.

Slade wrapped his arm down around his daughter, pulling her in against his chest. "He's fine. Much less than impressed by me being this age again—understandably," he said as her own expression darkened, "and no more pleased about being so much younger himself." He turned and gave Gar a long look, eye narrowed. 

Gar just looked innocently at the ceiling, before his attention was drawn to Roy shifting Lian closer in, the look on his face one of being both troubled and utterly enraptured. Dinah, Dick, and Donna //what's with all the D's for him? is there a code that says his life's people have to have all the same initials?// were framing the young father and fussing softly over the baby.

Maybe, just maybe, there was more than just humor in this.

Then Gar looked over at Starfire wearing a makeshift cover-up, and decided the laughs were just as priceless as babies.

Roy finally realized he should probably get out of the door, and the hallway, and started to walk on up to his room. He wanted clothes he could actually get to something near fitting, and just to hold his tiny little daughter for a while.

That seemed like an idea all of them could agree with, what with the way the rest of the team scattered behind him. 

Slade caught Dinah lightly as she started past him, and looked down at his daughter. "Rose, do you think you have anything Dinah could wear?" 

Rose cut a look at the fourteen year old, then her father, and she started to shake with laughter.

"Dad, Wintergreen is going to skin you alive...."

* * *

Roguish Ideas

Wally had been hard pressed to settle Linda down, to get her to understand that, if they did things right, this was only temporary. Being thirteen again didn't set well with any of the senior most Titans, with even worse ages for their later teammates. Heck, Damage and Argent had looked maybe eight or nine before he took off.

The problem was, once word came down from the League (trust Hal to still be a cosmic entity and only fifteen while he did it) that this whole thing was a test, and they thought saving their villains was the right way to do it, Wally got a headache. Captain Cold and Captain Boomerang had been at the fight, along with Mirror Master. J'onn assured him that all three would be placed with relatives and counseled that they could have any help they wanted in making a normal life for themselves. Wally did about have a conniption to learn Boomerang had a kid...and J'onn had brought them together, like some weird intergenerational bonding mismatch. Wally promised himself he'd go meet this Owen Mercer soon.

So with three taken care of, that left him with...how many? Why _did_ he have so many enemies? Barry had been a heck of a guy, and so many people liked him, so how did the Flash get so many baddies?

Maybe he'd run that question by Jay one day...for now...

Piper and Trickster were easy to find, and the Turtle never gave him a difficult time when he wanted to find him. Heat Wave and Weather Wizard made him wonder if he could really do any good...and eventually he decided that if he didn't check in on The Top, that Dillon might decide to take up crime again. Abra Kadabra seemed to have vanished, and he half wondered if the man had gone back to his original time. It hadn't made Booster go away, unfortunately, so Wally wasn't too sure about that.

While finding them had been easy, convincing them to listen to him, individually was tough. In some cases, like Weather Wizard who was a murderer, they still weren't thinking too straight. In others, like Trickster, they thought it was all some stunt.

However, by night's end, he had spoken to them all, been nearly toasted by Heat Wave and had to cart him off to juvie...and he'd kicked himself for that, as Heat Wave had killed his own parents pretty young...and had them convinced their only hope for being adults was trying the straight and narrow. 

The next morning, an unprecedented force of the Rogues was standing on the lawn of the Flash Museum, with two Flashes and an Impulse to greet them. Through the uneasy looks and nervousness, the group of kids headed out to do a civic clean-up detail, all won over by Wally's persuasive efforts.

When he looked up at the statue of his uncle, he almost thought the smile on it was there for him.

* * *

Catnaps

Ted was pretty glad he had come down on one hand...Selina was having a heck of a time handling Holly. Given that Selina was still matching his Hellcat in age, fourteen, and Holly was apparently ten or eleven, he understood that.

The reason he wished he hadn't come, once they got Holly to go lay down, was that Selina was entirely too sensual for this age, too pretty already, and Ted knew they both tended to lack self-control.

He didn't like feeling like a dirty old man.

Selina read him, took into account just how poorly this would be taken on a lot of levels, and came to sit with him, curling her legs under her, leaning her head on his chest. His arm slipped around her shoulders hesitantly, and she purred.

"Don't worry, Ted, your virtue's safe with me...for now."

Ted had to choke back a laugh and tightened his arm on her, letting her take comfort, as he hoped things got fixed soon enough.

* * *

A Simple Phone Call

In absolute honesty, the man had to admit he was nervous about making the phone call. If only those close to the costumed community had been affected, there was a chance she had not been. After all, Master Bruce and she had grown a bit distant as Master Bruce's crusade made her more sharply critical of his methods.

Alfred, however, was no coward. Either she was the same woman he had respected for years, or she was in the same position as he was. Either way, the call of a friend would be needed, appreciated, in face of the miniature chaos erupting because of various de-aged individuals.

He picked up the phone, dialed the number he had long since memorized, and waited.

"Alfred?"

The voice on the other end, lacking the waver of age, nearly took the unflappable butler's knees from him.

"Yes, Leslie...I thought I might should give you a ring."

`~`~`~`~`

Alfred raised an eyebrow at the fit of the clothing Bruce had chosen. "If that is what young people are wearing, save me."

Bruce shrugged into the shirt a little more carefully and shook his head. "Alfred, your sense of style will keep you safe. I, on the other hand, have to be careful, since Bruce Wayne is out of town on a soul-searching quest, and his young cousin Thomas Kane is in town."

"Fortunate for you that the Kane's black sheep branch of the family has never stayed in touch well with the rest of the clan?"

Bruce nodded. "Even if it did leave me two steps behind when Deathstroke...never mind. Cousin Adeline's father could have had other children than her, and it's served me well." Bruce looked in the mirror again, smiled and turned to Alfred. Hard as it had been to adjust to seeing a young man in his caretaker's place, it did make Bruce feel a touch of joy to know Alfred wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. "Think I can pass?"

"Indubitably. You'll outshine Mister Dent."

"Maybe." With that, Bruce headed out, leaving Alfred to smile. Some men would have been upset to lengthen their employ into two lifetimes, but Alfred was hoping maybe now Bruce would learn to live outside his cowl, just a little. Holding Harvey Dent's head above villainous waters meant being a true friend... one who was there as a person, not a shadow.

This might just turn out properly after all. On that thought, Alfred turned to go check on his other wards, with a sure knowing that he'd have to separate Jason and Stephanie, that Cassandra would be in the gym, again, and that Timothy likely was ready to escape to his young friends for the weekend.

It felt good to have so much around him, and he did not mind the youngness of their hearts in the least, let alone his body.

* * *

All's Not Well

He hadn't been anywhere near the battle where the world turned upside down for both sides of the capes and cowls community.

But the man with pasty white skin and permanent smile was also not in Arkham. When it hit, he came around to the feeling of an intense fog in his mind, blurring out the details of who and what he was. He naturally went out into the streets...and people fled in terror at the sight of him. 

The nameless young man, now barely sixteen, was confused, and a little hurt by this. He tried to find someone, anyone, who could help him.

Only to find himself facing a full squadron of clothed and plains-clothed police. Cars barricaded his every exit, and they watched him with fear.

He found that strikingly funny, and started to laugh.

He couldn't stop, even when they finally got the nerve up to rush him with tear gas and batons, beating him to an inch of his life.

Two weeks later, when a woman named Mercy Graves showed up to take custody of him, the pasty boy still didn't know who he was, but she promised there would be plenty of laughs where they were going.

* * *

The Chaos They Are

Wintergreen contacted Stone from the harbor, and was swiftly ferried over by the young man. He looked at the boy-sized cybernetics critically, trying to remember how old Stone had been at his accident.

"Don't break your head, old man," Vic told him. "Apparently, if it relates to your powers or who you are as a hero, it didn't go away." He then smirked. "Wilson's eye is still gone, so it might have something to do with self-perception too."

"Possibly," Wintergreen told him, accepting the epithet even if it no longer fit. If the Brit were to guess, he'd pin his own age down to twenty two or so. An age when he'd been hip deep in Nazi territory for His Majesty. That thought actually disturbed him, as it was a half century past.

Vic tied the ferry up and led Wintergreen inside to what must absolutely have been one of the rings of Dante's Hell.

There were young children and teenagers and babies everywhere. Apparently the eldest of the titans were clocking in at thirteen years of age, and it went downhill from there. The snarling temper of Pantha was facing off with a very stubborn Redstar, as the Russian boy held a small creature that could only be Baby Wildebeest. Damage, Argent, and Jesse Quick were not being helpful in the least, while young Mirage patiently diapered her own infant while Grayson attempted to help. A quick scan of the room had his heart miss a beat, because there was Rose, only eight years old and so very preciously ensconced with a phone.

//Probably talking to that boyfriend of hers,// Wintergreen mused. He continued on around the room, spotting both Dolphin and Tempest handling the infant they shared on the monitor to the pool room, aided by a young Donna Troy. Off to one side of the room was a young girl, a bit older than the others, if he did not miss his mark, holding a brightly red-haired infant. The brunette was unfamiliar to him...but he placed her as Black Canary after a moment showed him Harper hovering there.

//Forgot the child had his hair, younger.// Wintergreen's attention was distracted by a sudden sharp look of anger on Harper's face, looking back toward the hall on Wintergreen's left, and it made him glance that way. //What did you do, Slade, that Harper's so riled...but god, look at you...toward the end of Korea, minus the patch...yes...Wintergreen, old fool, you are in trouble...//

Slade stopped in the doorway from the pool for a long moment, his ears and eye instantly drawn towards the sounds, then sight, of his oldest and best friend... who looked younger and stronger than he had in any of Slade's memories. //Oh, god.// The damned near instant desire Wintergreen had so easily awakened in him all those years ago surged up, and he tried to kick it back down into its usual rest. "Old friend..." //At least my voice didn't catch,// he thought, wry twist to his lips on the thought. 

"I take it you're managing this carnival house for now?" Wintergreen asked, letting his pseudo-irritation at unexplained mysteries guard him from the desires seeing Slade so young, so fresh were stirring in him. He waved a hand at the younger Titans intent on chasing each other around and through the various attempts to parent babies from the more responsible ones.

"Apparently I am for the moment," he said, and then his eye sharpened at seeing Pantha's state of fangs-bared aggression. He vanished from the doorway to wrap his hand around the scruff of her neck and shake, growling low in his throat. "Behave, kitten. Leonid, what set her off?" 

Leonid began in Russian, then switched to English, forcing himself to be the adult he truly was, despite the mental effort.

"She refused to take her turn at changing Baby."

"Don't want!" Pantha growled at the infant. She swatted back at the hand holding her, with another growl of defiance.

Slade smacked her with his free hand, not half as hard as he wanted to, but hard enough to remind her that slicing at him wouldn't get her anywhere, and growled back at her. "Yes. You do, when you're thinking. That's your cub, Pantha."

Pantha growled again, but settled enough to be safely put down. This time, Leonid kept Baby in one arm, and slid his other around her shoulders, talking in soft Russian about how it would all be better once they were grown again.

"Quite the chaos, I'd say," Wintergreen said. "Suppose the only thing I can do...ooof, hello Rose..." His words had been interrupted by the white-haired bullet of a girl that had just impacted his legs and was hanging on for dear life. "As I was saying, I suppose I'll just have to stay until this is fixed."

"Good!" Rose smiled brightly up at him, and he gave her a fond look back.

Slade looked at his daughter, clinging that tightly to his old friend's legs, and pushed down another wave of that longing. He opened his mouth to bark a quick order at Grant and Toni to settle down, again, and chuckled as the Kid beat him to it. He looked at Wintergreen with a slight sigh. "I'm going to go stark mad trying to manage them if you don't, so thank you, old friend." He was damned glad of the help. He'd been a decent commanding officer by this age, true enough, but with children this young... He shook his head slightly, as his eye searched the room for his little bird. 

Dinah had been watching the two men quietly from the chair she and Lian now had with Roy along the back of it, already dwarfing her despite the apparent one year she had over him. She hated that this is how she and Slade had blown their cover, but maybe it was for the best. The only thing was whether Slade was ready to acknowledge her to his best friend. So she kept herself busy with the baby, letting Roy hover protectively, and waited patiently.

"Alright, I'll see to supplies...infants are going to need more than you're likely to have on hand..." Wintergreen began. 

"Our uncle ringed over a bunch of stuff," Jesse said, before zipping over to Dinah to make clear just who the other half of the 'our' was.

Slade nodded. "A couple days worth, but not much more than, Jesse. It does give us some leeway. But with a pair of speedsters, at least, in the house, and half the rest of the team this age--there's not nearly enough here. And you'll have a better head with that, Wintergreen." He moved over towards Dinah, ignoring Harper's glare as easily as he ever did, and put a hand down to lay on her shoulder. "I think you know everyone in the room, old friend, but in case you didn't place her, this is Dinah Lance, Black Canary." He turned to look back at him as he spoke, hand still resting there.

Dinah looked at the hand, then up at Slade's face with a soft smile for him.

"I placed her by her location with Harper, after I remembered she was rumored to be a brunette." Wintergreen nodded to the teenager, as Rose stifled a giggle. "And I take it that there is reason I should have met you before this, Miss Lance."

Dinah gave her attention back to the British man with that smile for Slade still lingering. "I'm sure you've heard Gregor fussing over my armor bills by now, but Slade was enjoying the guessing game."

//Dear boy, you have lost your bloody mind!// Wintergreen managed to confine the thought to a sharp look at his friend of so many decades. "He does enjoy dangerous pursuits," the elder man said, in a deceptively bland tone.

"I'm not even going to try and argue with that," Slade said with a shake of his head, a much better version of an innocent look on his face than he'd been able to manage in years. "It's too well known to be true."

//We'll discuss this in private, Slade,// flashed through Wintergreen's mind, before he tackled the task of keeping the children in check and making sure the Tower was not at risk. "Talk to me, old friend, while I get this place set..." His tone brooked no argument, as Wintergreen accepted the daunting task ahead.

Slade let his hand slip from Dinah's shoulder, and went to join his old friend. "The one time I'm not involved in something major going on, and this catches us both anyway..." the Titans (and one little bird) overheard as the two of them walked out of the room.

* * *

Happy Runaways

Harleen had managed to stay close to Pammy when the people came and decided just what to do with the lunatics that were now too far underage to be in Arkham.

Both of them had been unclear just what was going on, but the bureaucrats took long enough that both women had an idea by the time they were released into the care of one of Harleen's aunts. The idea was that this was a chance, a break they needed to make the most of. With Mistah J on the lam already, Harleen was free...and Pammy intended to keep her that way.

Robinson Park was out of the question. Nowhere in Gotham would be safe from Mistah J if the bastard showed back up. Pammy helped Harleen shimmy down from the window on the second floor, coaxing the vines closer.

A few bus tickets later, bought with money stolen from people too careless to guard themselves from the pair of thirteen year old girls (and in one case, from the skeezoid that had felt Harleen up), they were arriving in the middle of nowhere. It was hot, humid, and green everywhere. Harleen looked scared, until Pammy took her hands, and looked deep into her eyes.

"Our new home, you and me. Alec won't mind, as long as we stay deep in the Green."

"But...Red..."

"No, Harleen. We're not going to go out there like this, we're not going to get caught so soon. We wait it out, here, you and I...and I will take care of you." Pammy did not want to be alone anymore, did not want to lose this one friend who by turns annoyed and challenged her senses.

Harleen just wanted to be important to someone, and Pammy was willing to make that happen.

* * *

Transmogrifier

"Ted." It was quietly spoken.

"Ted." The second call had a little more urgency.

"BEETLE!" A full out shout, and the boy absorbed fully in rewiring a gadget that would do who knew what finally looked up.

"Huh?"

"Do you think Fire would hit me before or after I asked her to see just how much bigger she got with age?"

Ted stared a long moment at his very immature and obviously senile best friend and bosom buddy. "I dunno. Why don't you go ask Guy's opinion?"

Michael lit up like a Christmas tree. "Thanks! I will!" He jogged off to go find Guy in the sprawling embassy they were living out of, again, with their teammates. Ted waited, counting to himself, and laughed silently when he heard the crash of Michael falling down and Guy's roar.

"Now maybe I can finish this transmogrifier in peace," Ted muttered.

* * *

Tides Of Life

In the three weeks of shuffling people around, concocting stories for them, or other efforts made to keep identities preserved, Arthur had spent a lot of time with the surface dwellers. At least part of that was making sure Tadpole...Tempest...and his family were okay. By common consent, the Titans with infant children were staying at the Tower, with their other teammates.

Another part was the fact Mera had been shielded, as had Dr. Vulko, from the effect due to another temporal anomaly in Atlantis. It was the one time Aquaman could actually regret Dolphin had been above, instead of grumbling about her never leaving Atlantis since the baby came. At least with Mera an adult, Atlantis was being ruled well in his absence.

And then there was J'onn. Ever since the spell lashed out at them, J'onn had been holding the strain of caring for all the younger League members, situating lives, placing false memories, and so on. On top of that, he was devoting his time to saving as many of the rogues as he could, placing them with good matches in personality to try and pull them to the right side.

Arthur kept waiting for him to explode, when the young Atlantean wasn't distracted by his glands.

J'onn looked the same, and acted mostly the same, but Arthur could feel the stress wrapping itself around his Martian teammate. There was no way this could end well, and Arthur finally got reminded of the best way to reach J'onn.

An hour later, he let himself into the monitor womb, locked the door to senior protocol only, with a jug of milk and a pack of Chocos. J'onn looked at him, started to protest, and Arthur threw everything he had into the vestigial link between them, showing J'onn his concern.

{What is it, my brother, that pushes you to work so hard, and ignore your self?}

J'onn physically reared back, then shifted, becoming the spiny Martian he usually hid for his friends' sake of peace. "I, too, feel the pull of life that runs so freely in all of you," J'onn said, aloud, though he did not shut the link to Arthur down. There, seething in his mind, was the mass of emotional and physical impulses, held in check solely by force of will.

"J'onn..." Arthur moved to his friend, laying the cookies and milk in reach, but placing his hands on J'onn's shoulders. "Live a little, enjoy that flow of life," the strapping fifteen-year old said with a grin.

{I am alone...unless I go among J'emm's people.}

{You have us...} No sooner had it slipped, than Arthur flushed. {Oh yeah...full telepathic species...}

J'onn inclined his head, stepping back from Arthur and settling into the hybrid form he favored. "Indeed."

Arthur frowned, then looked up at the big alien with a sly grin. "Guess you're lucky there's a basic telepath among your friends." 

Even if J'onn hadn't been wide open due to the effort he had been maintaining, he could not have missed the true, open intent in that simple sentence. His eyes flared dark, of their own accord, as he surveyed the Atlantean a little more...in depth.

"I may very well be the luckiest man here, for that," J'onn agreed slowly, accepting the nudge of the link to share his chaotic state with Arthur. Over milk, cookies, and mental bonding, the two senior Leaguers settled J'onn down, and enjoyed the flow of life as it moved them on its tides.

* * *

A House Full Of Bats

Master Dick coming home had apparently been a signal that everyone in the house was to be hyperactive, Alfred decided. He approved of the boy's dedication to his team, but it was past time for Dick to see Jason and Stephanie and Cassandra, to lend his deft touch to things.

"Welcome home, Master Richard. I'm afraid the rest of the household is in various states of...activity." Alfred looked the newly bronze skinned boy over with satisfaction. Apparently Dick had been getting more sun than usual. "Someone is taking care of you children at the Tower," he could not help but add.

"Yeah, old friend of an old ... complication came to stay with us all. And Black Canary is bossy no matter what age she is," Dick said with a grin.

"Indeed." That at least explained why a certain bird had not been seen in Gotham since the incident. Of course, unless she had come to stay with the Scotts, her situation was very much that of an orphan currently.

As Dick started to say something else, the thunder of multiple feet running in the great hall could be heard, and Alfred turned disapprovingly that direction. Stephanie darted up the staircase suddenly, fast pursued by Tim and Jason, a very wet Cassandra on Jason's heels in a fury.

"CHILDREN!" Alfred actually raised his voice, making Dick's eyes go wide in shock.

"Yes Alfred?" That was Jason, the only one brassy enough to actually speak in the face of Alfred's wrath.

"Master Richard is home. Miss Cassandra, no doubt you have good reason for wishing revenge; I suggest you apply it on the mats tonight. Miss Stephanie and Master Timothy, I advise you against listening to any more plans by Master Jason for some time."

"But Alfred..."

"Master Timothy! I was not finished." He pinned each child with a glare, and was satisfied to get them all standing a little taller, but eyes properly downcast in their shame. "You will go change into clothing fit for cleaning, and tend to the mess you four have made. Then you will greet your brother properly, and behave as civilized human beings with some inkling of the proper behavior you should have. Am I clear?"

"Yes Alfred!" the four chorused, before going upstairs at a moderate pace to do as told.

For just an instant, Dick wondered if maybe he should have stayed at the Tower, but coming home to see everyone had seemed like a good idea...

And then Bruce walked in, looking far too young for Dick's peace of mind. Dick had thought Slade at nineteen was damn near irresistible (not that Slade had looked twice his way, between his trying not to notice his fourteen year old lover, and having a twenty-two year old Wintergreen in residence), but Bruce?

Bruce was Adonis. Perfect masculine form and handsome features, with a bearing that would make kings tremble.

Definitely not the thoughts Dick needed in his head as he smiled at the man that had taught him so much.

"Hey Bruce."

"Hey Dick." Bruce reached out and crushed the younger boy close in a hug. "Glad you could get away."

"Yeah, I..."

"Is he here?" The perky feminine voice accompanied the door swinging open to admit Barbara Gordon, age thirteen just like him (and that was weird enough). Dick, who had gotten used to the oddness of Slade being one-eyed despite youthening, just wasn't prepared for the fact she was all but running, and then throwing her arms around his neck. "About time you came down!"

"Oh, Barbara..."

Alfred stepped back and smiled, watching the two old friends walk into the den to catch up on things. Just as well the other children would be busy, he thought, watching Bruce regard the pair carefully.

* * *

Middle Of The Night

The ring of the phone brought Alan up from a sound sleep, and he sighed. Days like the past few sometimes made him regret Alexander Graham Bell's work.

"Alan Scott," he said, keeping his voice low in deference to his sleeping wife.

"Alan?" The scared tones of the boy's voice made it take a moment for Alan to place it.

"Kyle. What is it, boy?" He rose from the bed, to a murmured complaint of Molly, taking the phone with him into the main part of the house. He shivered slightly, wishing he'd grabbed his house robe over his pajama pants.

"I'm scared. And it's setting my ring off."

"Take it off, then." Alan managed to bite his chuckle down. The boy was a precious handful sometimes. He really hoped things between Kyle and Jenny stayed stable through this, but Jenny seemed to be going through a 'boys are icky' reaction. That worried him...his two children seemed less capable of remembering their adult sensibilities than some of the younger JSA members.

"I tried...my ring doesn't like it."

//Damned Corps Rings.// Alan shook his head, and sighed. "Why are you scared?"

"I..." Kyle paused and then squirmed from the sounds of moving cloth. "I don't like being alone."

"Where's your mother?" Now Alan was fully alert.

"She works nights. And isn't coping well with me being...this young."

//Oh, makes sense.// "She's young too..."

"And that bothers her too, Alan." Kyle sounded like a boy trying hard not to cry when that was all he really wanted to do.

"Leave her a note, and come here, Kyle. I have room." Alan would talk to her tomorrow, but for now...

"Thank you!" Kyle would arrive soon, and Alan would settle another child to sleep with no fear.

* * *

Double The Fun

Harvey checked the mirrored reflection by habit as the four Gotham elite walked into the club. He rather liked the smart kid staring back at him, and firmly appreciated the company he was keeping.

Ever since the ... event that had hit so many people worldwide, Bruce Wayne had been his bosom friend, again. It was a slice of heaven, after too long a road of hell.

Waking up in the doctor's office, after Bruce had taken him there with soft explanations of a horrible accident, and how Bruce was going to make it all better, Harvey had thought long and hard about life. The fog lifting off his memories had revealed Big Bad Harvey in a light that Harvey himself just did not like.

He didn't like to admit that sometimes...just sometimes, he saw the scarred face looking back in those reflections. Or that he heard a laugh that was not his own, yet was. Or that every time he threw out the scarred, double-headed coin, it was somehow sitting on the dresser the next morning.

He wanted to be normal. He wanted to go back to school, tackle the judicial system all over again. Granted, like Bruce, he'd chosen a new name, to escape some of the spotlight. It was fitting that he and Bruce were of a similar build, if not features. Thomas Kane and Adon Janus, as Harvey had chosen, were out for a night with two leading families' daughters, and could almost pass for twins.

Harvey didn't think too hard about that warmth he got when he thought of that fact, or that Bruce's new name meant 'twin'.

He was going to enjoy his new life, and Bruce was going to be there for him.

* * *

Double the Trouble 

Harvey looked so peaceful, laughing at the bubble-headed beauty he'd chosen for his date, Bruce decided. Bruce also had to admit he felt just as peaceful Gotham had been quiet, and he'd been around to see as many of his former rogues as possible. The kids were helping him there, and maybe Dick would stay to finish that up; there were some who would be more open to the first Robin.

They'd had a good time at the restaurant before taking in a show, and were now walking their ladies back to where the cars were. Bruce had just leaned in to ask...Teresa, that was her name, a question when the peace shattered and left Bruce vulnerable to a moment's panic of a little boy about to have his world ripped apart.

//I told Clark we'd have trouble from him,// Bruce growled in his own mind as Lex, in full armor of his signature purple and green, was right in front of him, ready to make life full of pain again. He tapped a button on his cell phone in his pocket, unobserved.

Behind him was a boy near Bruce's age, sickeningly pale, mouth turned up in a hideous grin, carrying a water pistol.

Bruce knew it wasn't water in that seeming toy.

"Mister Dent! I believe we have business with you!" Lex's voice rippled out, the timbre enriched by careful theatrical use, but Bruce could see the longtime nemesis of his best friend was still nothing more than a teenager like himself.

"That's not my name." Harvey pulled himself to his full height, already showing the potential he would grow into. //It is, you can't deny us.//

Bruce was trying to keep his attention on the menaces ahead of them, having shifted in front of his date, but Harvey was still ahead of him. He could see the minute ripple of a muscle spasm, and wondered what had caused it. Then he saw the tic.

A muscle tic in the side of Harvey's face that had only recently been restored to health.

Bruce's mouth was completely dry, and his focus narrowed to the Joker's water pistol.

Acid-resistant material. None of the four men made an effort to stop the girls that had inched away enough to turn and run in fear.

"Come now, Big Bad Harv...you can't tell me you're doubling over in delight to be at the beginning of your life again. That you could divide yourself from the power you had? To do this period of your life twice might be tempting, but this age is half as interesting," Lex said in soothing tones.

The Joker remained silent, a vacantness in his eyes that had never been there before. Bruce studied that, looking the sickly teen over with a deep insight.

The Joker was the key here. If he shot the acid, and Bruce failed to protect Harvey, Two-Face would be reborn.

Lex would use him as one more minion to regain the status quo, a war of his views against those of the League, of the JSA, of the Titans.

And it would prove, for all time, that the heroes really didn't do any more good than harm, in Bruce's heart, and likely to those who had inflicted this test on them.

"Joker."

Bruce's voice cut through Harvey's involuntary twitching, through Lex's smooth speech. The empty-eyed psychotic turned to look at the imposing teen out of surprise.

"He belongs to me, now, playboy. You lost him in your bid to save your friend there."

//The worst of mine, and I didn't...// He had to fight the images of Jason's broken body, or Barbara in her wheelchair, of Jim in the fun house. He pushed aside all of that and saw the boy in front of him, twisted by Lex's manipulations away from even the familiar madness.

"Joker, it doesn't have to be this way," Bruce continued, not letting Lex rile him up.

The mocking laughter spilled out. "Batsy, is that you?" More laughter. "Lexy, which one should I spritz first?"

"Stay focused on Harvey, my friend," Lex commanded, and those empty eyes turned back to the darker of the teens they faced.

"Right...Big Bad Harv wants to come play double dutch with us...he just needs help," Joker said.

Bruce saw the tightening of the muscles, and after that it was all instinct.

That Harvey called his name made a dim impression, before fire riddled every nerve through his back, the hard thud of himself and Harvey on concrete a counterpoint to the fiery sensation.

He wanted to rise, to help, because he thought he heard someone else calling his name, but the burn pulled him down into oblivion.

* * *

The Measure Of A Man

Bruce's eyes opened slowly to the sound of quiet, while his body ad to fully acknowledge the pain and the discomfort of being bound in heavy gauze. Near him, even as he was waking, he had detected the sound of at least three people.

One of them, seeing his eyes flick open, reached out and took his hand. It at least was unbandaged, and he turned his head...slowly because of pain down the neck muscles...to see Dick watching him with mischief and joy shining out of his eyes.

"Welcome back."

"How..."

"Your transponder worked. It alerted all of us, but Clark beat us there. Not that he got to do more than handle Lex. Harvey had already jumped the Joker and about beat him unconscious."

"Not..."

"No, Bruce. He never went above subduing." Dick smiled at him, and then Alfred moved into Bruce's limited view; damn but the acid must have cut deep for his back and neck to hurt that much. The older man shifted Bruce to be able to sit up.

"Harvey took one look at Superman, the Joker, and Lex all there with you and him, and then we all showed up," Tim said softly. "He looked back at you, then up to Superman. He said 'There are some things I'd rather not remember.' Then he and Superman walked off."

Alfred cleared his throat. "Master J'onn was called upon, and there was a long talk between he and Mister Dent. Harvey remembers your other persona saving him, having already parted from your company."

Bruce frowned at that. "That could cause trouble."

"No, Bruce." Dick smiled even more broadly. "Harvey won't be a problem...he wanted to matter, not only in public, but in his private life. And he truly asked J'onn to make him not know you are Batman...because he'd hate to have to bring you up on vigilantism charges. He's committed himself back to law school."

"Alright." Bruce stopped and thought about it. "Where is Jason?"

Now the smile faltered, but Alfred scowled at Dick and Tim both. "Master Jason apparently gained cognizance of his...issues with the Joker when he saw the man lying there. There was a momentary breach of discipline, but both Miss Cassandra and Miss Stephanie helped him calm. Since then, he and the girls have been working with Commissioner Gordon to be sure the city stays safe."

That made Bruce nod, just a fraction, and close his eyes again.

Maybe, just maybe, they'd pass this test after all.

* * *

In The End, Each His Own

The Spectre, Dr. Fate, and the various members of the magic community knew first just when the test had ended. The outcome had been hotly contested among the Powers, it seemed, but in the end, They had decided that They had no right to hold humans (or other beings) with special gifts to a higher standard than those without.

Yet, the damage was done. Villains, heroes, and those most closely connected to them had had their lives changed by the youthening. Either everything had to be changed back, with no recompense, or a compromise had to be met.

So They let Their messengers spread the word. One week to choose, youth or maturity. It only applied to those who had actively tried to make the best of it. All others would automatically revert to the age they had possessed. There would be another provision, one that would show in due time, They assured Their messengers.

That was enough for some to opt to the higher ages they had possessed. Clark Kent and Lois Lane returned to their jobs, for instance. Selina Kyle chose the adulthood she had struggled to reach, but her companion Holly was more than willing to make a second attempt at growing up right. For some, it was not so clear cut.

`~`~`~`~`

At Wayne manor, a full family conclave was called. Dick chafed, wanting to be back at Titans Tower, to learn what his friends were doing, but he managed to keep his restlessness confined to prowling the edges.

Stephanie, Cass, Tim, and Jason had fallen into a playful game of push and shove until Alfred cleared his throat. Leslie laying her hand on his arm made him relent some, but the children settled.

Then Bruce stood up from his chair and cleared his throat.

"I have regained several years. In all conscience, I prefer to stay with the new identity I have set up. Thomas Kane's background is going to suit Wayne Industries more, and let me keep an eye on my other family's doing. And it lets me give Gotham that much more potential," he said in a firm voice that belied his sixteen year old face. "I don't ask that any of you follow this at all, that you each choose according to your own wishes."

"Master Bruce, I would be remiss if I let you face the nights alone any sooner than I must," Alfred said softly. "I need every ounce of youthful vigor to cope with this life."

"And with the doc," Jason muttered, getting punched by Steph for it in his arm.

"Mama is coping real well now," Steph said. "She liked the idea of having me back...but I've already done things no kid should have floating in her head. I want to be my real age."

"Me too," Tim told them.

Cass just nodded, agreeing with her two best friends.

Dick spread his hands wide. "I can't. Being this way...it's taken too much from me, Bruce. So even if it means I'm older than you, I've got to grow back up."

Bruce smiled at him. "This time at least you skip the makeout sessions by the gargoyles?"

"BRUCE!"

That made them all laugh, even Leslie.

"I have discussed this business with Alfred, and have chosen to go back to school. There are so many new techniques," Leslie said. "That I prefer to begin this new life with medical school."

"With my full support," Alfred assured her.

That left Jason, and he swallowed as they all looked his way.

"No family out there, but here...I already had family here, when I went looking for mom. I just...couldn't see it. I don't think I would have been okay if Bruce hadn't found me when this whole young thing happened," he said. "And I don't like having the death in my head, but that won't get better by growing up." He leered at Steph. "Guess I'll just crush on you, Blondie, cause I'm sticking it out. Little Wing can be the big brother." He looked at Bruce. "Think it suits?"

"Yes, Jason...it suits me well." Bruce regarded his family. "All of your choices do, especially yours Alfred, Leslie."

`~`~`~`~`

Bart hugged his knees tight as he stayed still on the couch in the Garricks' household. Being here had been swell, much as he missed Max, but he wasn't sure he could ask them to let him do this.

"What is it, son?" Jay asked, and Bart really felt like he had found another father. Jay and Joan both did things with him, had indulged him living down to being nine years old with honest care for him.

"I don't wanna speed back up!" Bart blurted.

"Oh thank goodness," Joan said softly, moving closer and pulling Bart into a warm hug. "Then neither will we, and this time, young man, you're going to take your time being a boy."

Bart sniffled into her hug, then remembered something very important. "Have to call her..."

`~`~`~`~`

Rose, all eight years of her, scratched at Wintergreen's door, and came in when he assented. She climbed up on the edge of the bed, as the man adjusted his dressing robe tighter.

"Wintergreen? What do you think Mama'd say about this?"

Wintergreen looked at her with a gentle expression. "That you should lose yourself in the forgetting of what you've had done, and let yourself be who you wish to be."

"I... think I would rather stay, and getting to know Daddy has made me think he might be okay with that, but it's you...you I want the blessing from. You're more my father than he is, in some ways," Rose said softly.

"The boy is staying young?"

"Yes. But I want to do it for me, too."

"Good thing I've chosen to stay this age, girl," Wintergreen chuckled. "I'll see to the paperwork in the morning, for removing you from the Madisons." He hugged the child tight when she moved close, and closed his eyes.

In the hall, passing by, Slade paused and considered. Wintergreen not leaving him so soon left him weak with relief, but he considered the age ratio. If he reverted, the perceived age gap would be reversed. And he was going to have an eight year old daughter to consider.

Not to mention that even when Dinah returned to her proper age, she'd still look like jailbait...damnable Lazarus Pit business.

He continued his path to his room, and decided immortal nineteen was as useful as immortal mid-forties. He would stay as he was.

`~`~`~`~`

It would be a few more months before Vandal Savage became a huge thorn in everyone's side, the first Immortal to learn that there was no such thing as immortality now.

`~`~`~`~`


End file.
